Gas turbines include numerous components, such as, for example, a combustor for mixing air and fuel for ignition, a turbine blade and rotor assembly for producing power, and a flow supply system for supplying cooling fluid/gas (“coolant”) to turbine blade and rotor components when the gas turbine is in operation. Gas turbine combustors often operate at temperatures that can exceed 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit, and as such, the turbine components, including the blade and rotor components, are exposed to these high temperatures. As a result, the flow supply system is useful for cooling the blade and rotor components during operation of the gas turbine to help maintain durability requirements of these components.
Turbine cooling and leakage air (“TCLA”) is one form of coolant which may be supplied in a pressurized form through the flow supply system for cooling the blade and rotor components. However, when TCLA, or other coolants, escape from the flow supply system, this negatively impacts the durability of the blade and rotor components, as well as the efficiency and performance of the gas turbine.
In certain blade and rotor assemblies, the flow supply system includes a plurality of junctions at respective rotor blade connections (e.g., a rotor dovetail adjacent a rotor e-block) through which coolant channels are in fluid communication to supply coolant to the associated blade and rotor components. This junction often includes an exposed portion that contributes to the discussed pressure loss, leakage, and sub-optimal flow dynamics of the coolant in the flow supply system, and thus contributes to inefficiency of the gas turbine. However, modifying the rotor and/or the blades to correct this deficiency can be expensive and require complex de-stacking of the rotor blades. Modification also does not allow for continued use of existing, unmodified blade and rotor components. As a result, a new and versatile flow control device that solves these challenges, among others, is needed.